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Skriven 2007-04-24 23:30:56 av Whitehouse Press (1:3634/12.0)
Ärende: Press Release (0704249) for Tue, 2007 Apr 24
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President Bush Encourages the Reauthorization of No Child Left Behind
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For Immediate Release Office of the Press Secretary April 24, 2007

President Bush Encourages the Reauthorization of No Child Left Behind
Harlem Village Academy Charter School New York, New York

˙˙White House News

˙˙˙˙˙ Fact Sheet: No Child Left Behind: Keeping America Competitive in the
21st Century ˙˙˙˙˙ In Focus: Education

2:00 P.M. EDT

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you for the warm welcome. I appreciate you making a
Texan feel right at home here in Harlem. (Laughter.) I have had a
remarkable experience here at Harlem Village Academy Charter School.

You know, it's interesting, one of the children said, why here, why did you
come here, Mr. President? Of all the schools in the country, why this
school? And my answer is because the President has an opportunity to herald
excellence, and I have seized that opportunity. I have come to a school
where some may say these children can't possibly exceed high standards --
but, in fact, they are. Secondly, I wanted to be nice to the chairman of
the House Ways and Means Committee. (Applause.)

I think any time I can thank a teacher, I need to do so. So for the
teachers here, thank you for teaching, for the principals -- (applause.)
Interestingly enough, this week is called National Charter School Week -- I
mean, next week is called National Charter School Week, so a good way to
herald National Charter School Week is come to a charter school,
particularly one that's working. I'm a big believer in charter schools. I
think charter schools make a lot of sense, whether it be here in Harlem or
anywhere else in the United States.

And so a way to express support for a charter school is to come to one
that's working and say to people, if you find excellence, you might want to
take a look at why; what is it about this school that enables a parent to
say I really enjoy sending my child here. Or what is it about this school
where a child looks at the President and says, I don't mind being tested,
because I know that they're going to help correct problems early, before
it's too late. This school is working, and I appreciate you letting me come
to talk about not only this school, but also about an important piece of
legislation called the No Child Left Behind Act.

Before I do so, I thank Deborah for being what I call an educational
entrepreneur. That means that -- (applause.) So I said to Deborah -- you
know, I've never met Deborah before, and I said, how did you get involved
in this school? She had a personal tragedy, and rather than allowing the
personal tragedy to drag her down, she said, I want to make a contribution.
And I can't think of a better contribution than to help start a charter
school -- as a matter of fact, not only one, but two. I also thought it was
interesting, she said, if you're going to be somebody who helps start
charter schools and works to make charter schools excellent, that you
better be on the front lines of education. So she became the principal of
this school.

If you're interested in helping your community -- whether you be an
individual, such as a Deborah, or a corporation, for example -- promote
school excellence, do something for the community in which you live. A lot
of times if you wait for government, things won't happen. She's proven my
case. She says, I want to be involved and I want to start some schools.
Corporate America needs to take the same interest in local schools if they
expect there to be a -- (applause) -- if we expect our country to realize
its promise.

Mateo Myers introduces Dr. Kenny and introduces me. Mateo Myers. So I said
to a lot of the kids here at this school, how many of you want to go to
college? They all rose -- raised their hand. That's a good sign. In other
words, this school believes in high expectations and putting in a child's
mind the possibilities of achieving a dream.

I appreciate very much Joel Klein. You talk about a guy who has taken on a
tough job, and in my judgment, my humble judgment, is doing it with
excellence, is Joel Klein. (Applause.) As a result of that endorsement, he
may never find work again in New York, but nevertheless -- (laughter.)

See, I love it when somebody heralds that which is working and takes on
that which is not working. I like a man who says, the status quo is
unacceptable when it's unacceptable, and is willing to do hard work all
aimed at making sure every child gets a good education. And we appreciate
the standard you've set, and appreciate the example you have shown, Joel.

I want thank Ed Lewis, Chairman of Village Academies. Ed Lewis is a
successful businessman who, instead of taking his successes and
disappearing, has taken his successes and used that which enabled him to be
successful to plow back into a community. And that's an example a lot of
other people need to see. (Applause.)

People say to me all the time, what can I do, Mr. President? How can I
contribute? Well, if you want to contribute, work on school excellence. I
can't think of a better way to contribute to the future of the United
States than to promote alternatives if the school systems in your community
aren't -- isn't working. In other words, just don't set the status quo if
children are not meeting standards. Challenge that status quo, and do
something about it.

I appreciate very much Nick Timpone, who is the principal

here at Harlem Village. (Applause.) That's a good sign. Like, I'd be
worried about the silence, you know. (Laughter.) It turns out that good
schools such as this have good principals, people who work hard, people who
-- you know, motivate the teaching staff, people who listen to parents. And
I appreciate you very much being at the center of this important school.

Traveling with me today is the Secretary of Education, Margaret Spellings.
I appreciate you coming, Madam Secretary. (Applause.) Her job is to work
with local school districts so that the federal, state, and local
relationship is a collaborative relationship that actually works and
doesn't get in each other's way. And her job is to implement No Child Left
Behind. And I couldn't have picked anybody better to do so.

I want to thank, again, Charlie Rangel. He is the chairman of the Ways and
Means Committee. (Applause.) You can imagine what it's like traveling in
the presidential limousine down Adam Clayton Powell Boulevard hearing
Rangel say, I was raised over here, and here's the hotel I worked in when I
was a boy. You know, the people in Harlem have got a fantastic Congressman
in Charles Rangel. He cares deeply -- (applause.) He can agree with me a
few more times, but -- (laughter) -- I don't expect him to. But I do expect
him to do what he does, which is work for the good of the country. And I'm
really proud to be with you. Thanks for coming, Charlie. (Applause.)

Peter King, Congressman Peter King and Vito Fossella is with us today. Both
of these congressmen care about education. (Applause.) I appreciate the
members of the New York Charter School community who have taken time to
come. I want to thank the Harlem community leaders who have joined us
today. Thanks for -- thanks for letting me be here. I particularly want to
thank the students for letting me come by to say, hello. I've really
enjoyed my trip here, and you've impressed me.

I do want to say something about Virginia Tech, the Virginia Tech
community. It's a community that still hurts, and the people in Blacksburg,
Virginia, must know that citizens, whether they be in Harlem or anywhere
else in the country, still hold those folks in their prayers.

Schools should be places of safety. They should be a sanctuary of learning.
And when that sanctuary is violated, the impact is felt all across the
country. It's felt in every classroom. And I know -- I know you've worried
about such violence here, as a result of the Virginia Tech. And I want to
thank the principals and teachers for reacting and helping calm nerves and
assure people that this is a place of safety and a sanctuary for learning.

I have asked people in my administration to travel around the country, to
listen to folks at the state and local level to determine what lessons can
be learned from the Virginia Tech horror. Margaret Spellings is going to be
a part of this team, as is the Justice Department, Health and Human
Services. We, of course, will provide whatever assistance we can to
Virginia Tech; but we also want to be a part of a review of broader
questions that have been raised.

And so they're going to travel the country. They're going to talk with
mental health experts and educators and state and local officials, and come
back and summarize what they have learned, and we'll share the summaries of
what they've learned, all in the hopes of learning lessons from a horrible
moment. It was -- it's a tough time down there.

I want to talk about schools, and I want to talk about educational
excellence for every single child. And I want to emphasize that in my
remarks, my hopes of the public school systems in every state and every
community excel. That's our goal. The public school systems have provided
great opportunities for a lot of Americans. One of the great assets of the
United States of America is a public school system that works. (Applause.)

I also believe that parental involvement is an important aspect of having a
public school system that works, and I like the fact that charter schools
encourage parental involvement. (Applause.) I like to be able to sit with
parents and say, I have chose school for my child -- chosen the school for
my child -- I could use a little extra help. (Laughter.)

Isn't that an interesting concept? I made the choice to send my child here.
That has got a nice ring to it, as far as I'm concerned. I appreciate the
fact that the teachers involve the parents in the child's education.
There's a lot of information flows that take place between the parent and
the child, and the child and the teacher. I appreciate the fact that
teachers give parents their cell phone numbers. I think that's an important
way to make sure parents are involved in the education of their children.

I appreciate the fact that folks here set high standards. I know this isn't
all that profound, but when you set low standards you get bad results. I
used to call it the soft bigotry of low expectations. You kind of say,
well, certain people can't learn, therefore let's make sure the standards
are low. This school challenges that soft bigotry and insists upon high
standards. And guess what? That's what parents want. Parents want their
children challenged. Parents believe that high standards are good for their
children.

I appreciate the fact that people go to school here from 7:30 a.m. until
5:45 p.m. (Applause.) That's innovation. That means somebody here is
saying, I'm going to adjust the time the children go to school so that we
can achieve high standards. I like the idea of schools having flexibility
to meet the needs of their parents and their children. Maybe some schools
around the country couldn't have that kind of innovation because the rules
and the process say, well, you can't adjust that way. What I like are
schools that focus on results, and then adjust the process to meet the
results.

I appreciate the fact that parents choose this school because it's safe.
That's what parents want -- they want safety for their children. I met with
Vanessa Freeman; her daughter, Krystal, goes to this school. She was
struggling at her old school. The teacher said she was acting up in class
in the old school. In other words, the parent, Vanessa, recognized there
was a problem and -- my mother probably got a few of those calls, too --
(laughter) -- but, anyway, Vanessa transferred Krystal here to the Harlem
Village Academy. She's learning algebra. She said her math teacher -- her
math teacher says her progress has given her goose bumps.

In other words, something has changed here at this school. In other words,
there is progress being made because the parent had an option to choose
something different when the other school wasn't working. It's a powerful
catalyst for reform, by the way, to give people those options. That's why
I'm a strong supporter of the charter school movement, I appreciate
providing different options.

I want you to know that it is a national objective, an important national
goal to make sure every child realizes his or her full potential. And that
is the whole philosophy behind the No Child Left Behind Act. You know, when
we put our mind to it, actually Republicans and Democrats can work together
-- we did so to get this important piece of legislation passed.

The philosophy behind the bill is this: When the federal government spends
money, we should expect results. And by the way, when the state spends
money, it ought to expect results, too. Instead of just spending money and
hoping for the best, the core philosophy of the No Child Left Behind says,
we'll spend money and we expect you to measure and we expect you to post
your scores and we expect you to meet standards. Because if you don't,
you're failing in your obligation to educate every child.

Now, if you believe certain children can't learn, then you shouldn't
measure. In other words, if you think that, well, it's just a hopeless
exercise, let's just move kids through the school system, then that makes
sense not to measure -- why would you -- why waste the time. I believe
every child can learn, and therefore I believe every school should measure
in return for federal money. And then put the scores up early.

I'll tell you why: I want the parents to be involved with education. And
one way you're involved with education is you're able to compare the test
scores of your school to your neighborhood school. It's an interesting way
to determine whether or not high standards are being met. In some cases a
parent will say, this is the greatest school possible, and, yet, when the
test scores get posted the reality comes home.

Secondly, I don't see how you can solve problems unless you measure
problems. How do you know whether a child needs extra help in reading
unless you measure? In other words, the accountability system is step one
of a diagnostic process that ends up making sure that each child gets the
help that's needed to meet standards, high standards. And so the No Child
Left Behind Act, a simple way of describing it says if you set high
standards, we'll give you money, but we expect you to meet those standards.
And if not, there ought to be different options for the parents.

I appreciate the results of this school. In other words, it's interesting,
isn't it, that the President can come and say you've got good results here
-- because you measure. Teachers use the assessment to see what concepts
students are mastering, and which concepts ought to be continued and which
concepts ought to be dropped. The data from this school that you -- as a
result of measurement helps teachers tailor their lesson plans to the
specific needs of the child. Isn't that interesting? The education system
tailoring the needs to fit the -- tailor the curriculum to fit the needs of
the child? That may sound simple, but it's an unusual concept for a lot of
schools.

The school has a rapid response accountability system. In other words, you
don't measure once and just kind of hope for the best for the remainder of
the year -- you track student progress closely from week to week. When
student struggle, they receive one-on-one tutoring during the school day.
If a child struggles, there is extra help on a Saturday, hence, No Child
Left Behind. As opposed to the old system, where you just shuffled children
through and hope for the best at the end, this school measures on a regular
basis to make sure that we're dealing not with guesswork, but with results.

I appreciate the fact that this school opened in the fall of 2003. I want
you to hear this statistic: During the first year, less than 20 percent of
the 5th graders could meet state standards in math, only 20 percent --
(applause) -- wait a minute, that's nothing to applaud for. (Laughter.)
That's, like, pitiful. Last year, 96 percent of the students -- (applause)
-- from the same class were meeting state standards. One of the students
was Kevin Smith. His mother says that when Kevin came to the Harlem Village
Academy in 2003, he struggled. And now, she says, "He can do it with his
eyes closed." That's a math student right there. (Laughter.) Deborah Kenny
says, "Our school proves that children can achieve grade level even when
they start behind." And that's the spirit.

We can see that No Child Left Behind is working nationwide. There's an
achievement gap in America that better be closed if we want America to
remain the leader of the world. It is unacceptable to me and it should be
unacceptable to people across the country we have an achievement gap in
America. (Applause.)

It's amazing what happens, though, when you measure. The percentage of New
York City 4th graders meeting state standards in reading has increased by
more than 12 percent over five years. The percentage of 4th graders doing
math at grade level has increased by 19 points. Congratulations, Joel, for
holding people to account. (Applause.) I know, people say, I don't like to
test, you're testing too much. I don't see how you can solve problems
unless you diagnose the problems. I don't see how you can meet high
standards unless you test.

I appreciate the fact that nationwide, nine-year-olds have made more
progress in five years than in the previous 28 years combined on these
tests in reading. How about that? In other words, we're beginning to make
progress early. The pipeline is beginning to be full of little readers that
are competent readers. And the fundamental question is, what do we do in
junior high and high school? Do we keep the progress going, or do we fall
off when it comes to holding people to account?

I believe strongly that we ought to bring the same standards to high school
that we've had in elementary -- one through eight, or three through eight.
That's what I believe. I believe if you want to make sure a high school
diploma means something, you better have high accountability in high
schools. We want the high school diploma to say, this person is ready to
compete in a world in which the graduates are going to be competing with
Chinese or Indian workers. In other words, it matters what happens now in
our schools, more so than ever before.

And so part of the initiative to make sure that we continue to set high
standards is to bring these standards to high school. I believe strongly
that we ought to -- the federal government has a role in expanding advanced
placement courses all across the United States of America. I'm a big
believer in AP. I think AP holds people to account, and challenges people
to realize their full potential.

We've got an effort right now to encourage 30,000 math and science
professionals to become part-time teachers. Why would you encourage math
and science professionals? Because if you've got the capability of
competing globally in math and science, you're going to be getting a good
job, is why. It's a practical application of U.S. resources to encourage
30,000 math and science professionals to enter classrooms to encourage
people to be interested in math and science.

You know, I met a math teacher here. The man went to Harvard -- now, we're
not going to hold that against him, but nevertheless -- (laughter) -- he's
out there somewhere. (Laughter.) He's teaching math. He'd been doing a lot
of things, and he's teaching math right here at this important charter
school, because he understands the importance of teaching a child math, in
terms of that child being able to find good work and be a productive
citizen in this challenging 21st century.

Here are some ways we can improve the No Child Left Behind Act. My funding
request has money for underperforming schools, when you recognize there's
failure and these schools need help. I'm a strong believer in making sure
that money follows children. And so when we find a child failing in meeting
high standards, there ought to be extra tutorial money for that child. In
other words, the measurement system not only helps determine who's falling
behind, but it helps determine whether or not that child ought to get extra
money now, early, before it's too late. That's been an integral part of No
Child Left Behind. It's going to be a significant part of No Child Left
Behind as we go forward.

I believe strongly that we've got to make sure that we -- if a school just
won't change and continues to fail, that principals ought to be given
additional staffing freedom. In other words, there ought to be flexibility
-- more flexibility as opposed to less flexibility when a school fails.

I think we ought to empower mayors and other elected officials to take a
more active hand in improving their schools. If you find failure, it's
important to do something differently. And one way to do so is to encourage
more power in the hands of our mayors to break through bureaucratic logjams
that are preventing people from achieving educational excellence.

And we ought to make it easier for officials to reorganize failing schools
into charter schools. We just cannot allow the status quo to exist when we
find failure.

Another way we can help is to encourage our nation's best teachers to take
jobs in some of the toughest neighborhoods. And so we proposed increasing
the investment in the Teacher Incentive Fund to nearly $200 million next
year. In other words, there's a way for the federal government to encourage
teachers to take on jobs that are important jobs, and making sure that
every child gets a good education with a good teacher. The fund rewards
teachers who defy low expectations. It provides incentives for people to
come into districts all around the United States to challenge the softy
bigotry that I was talking about.

Third, parents of students in underperforming schools must have better
choices. You find your child stuck in a school that won't teach and won't
change, you ought to have a different option. I can't think of a better way
to get somebody's attention that we're tired of mediocrity than to give a
parent an option. I think there's a better -- no better way to send a
signal that folks are tired of mediocrity when it comes to our classrooms
than say to a parent, you should have a different opportunity for your
child, whether it be a charter school -- (applause) -- or a better
performing public school.

In Washington, D.C., we did an interesting -- made an interesting
initiative, and that is, is that we provided scholarship money for poor
students to go to any school they wanted. I like that idea. I think it
makes a lot of sense. You know, we have Pell grants for poor students to go
to college. I think we ought to have federal taxpayer's money to go to poor
parents so they can choose a different type of school if they're
dissatisfied with the school their child is going to. And so I would
strongly urge Congress to reauthorize and refund the D.C. School Choice
Program, and take a good look at our program that intends to expand that
program.

I do want to congratulate Governor Spitzer and Mayor Bloomberg for working
with the Chancellor here to increase the number of charter schools here in
New York. I appreciate the fact that they're taking a bold initiative. As I
understand, they want to double the number of charter schools available for
the students here in New York, and that's a good thing. You know, Margaret
is going to help you, to the extent that she can. (Applause.)

So now we're in the process of rewriting this bill -- reauthorizing it.
Here's my attitude about this: one, Congress shouldn't weaken the bill.
It's working. The No Child Left Behind Act is working. These test scores
are on the rise. Accountability makes a significant difference in
educational excellence.

And so therefore, when Republicans and Democrats take a look at this bill,
I strongly urge them to not weaken the bill, not to backslide, not to say,
accountability isn't that important. It is important. We'll work with the
school districts on flexibility when it comes to the accountability system.
And I mean that there are certain ways that we can make this -- the
accountability system actually work better than it's worked in the past.

But we will not allow this good piece of legislation to be weakened. And if
you're a parent, you should insist that the No Child Left Behind Act remain
a strong accountability tool so that every child in this country gets a
good education. I'll reach out to both Republicans and Democrats again.
Last time I signed the bill, I was on the stage with one of Charlie's good
friends and colleagues, Congressman George Miller from California, Ted
Kennedy, and two Republican colleagues of theirs. And it was -- we worked
well together.

And so my pledge is that I will continue to reach out and work with the new
leadership of the Congress, all aimed at making sure this piece of
legislation goes forward, and making sure it's funded, so that we can say,
once again, we've got law in place that will enable us to give every child
as good an education as possible so that not one child, not one, is left
behind in our country.

It's such an honor to be here. I love coming to a place where people defy
expectations. (Applause.) I love coming to a place where you said, we're
going to try to do something in a different way, that the status quo is not
acceptable, so here we go. I love being with educational entrepreneurs,
good principals, strong teachers, caring parents, and students who are
going to be leading this nation in the 21st century.

God bless. (Applause)

END 2:29 P.M. EDT

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